KPD Accredited For Highest Professional Standard of Policing

Published on November 20, 2020

Group of Kirkland police officers standing outside the Kirkland Justice Center

Media Contact:
Public Information Officer
Tiffany Trombley
ttrombley@kirklandwa.gov

KIRKLAND, Wash. - Kirkland Police Department has successfully completed a rigorous accreditation program that certifies it is operating under best practices and standards for law enforcement. The program is administered by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) and involves a multi-phase process over several months.

“We are proud to be accredited by WASPC,” said Deputy Chief Michel St. Jean. “It means our department has achieved the highest professional standards for policing.”

Benefits of accreditation include administrative and operational effectiveness, fair recruitment and employment practices, better records management, improved use of technology, health and safety, training, codes of conduct and prisoner security, among other important law enforcement tasks.

“The Kirkland Police Department has worked hard to obtain this achievement,” said Steven Strachan, WASPC executive director. “The community should be proud of local law enforcement for taking direct and tangible steps to earn the public’s confidence in their operations.”

The certification is awarded for a four-year period after initial accreditation has been achieved. Kirkland Police Department’s 2020 accreditation follows its previous accreditation in 2016.

The Washington State Legislature originally called for the development of standards and goals for law enforcement in 1976. The current WASPC program is continually updated and strives to guide law enforcement with best practices, accountability measures, and heightened organizational discipline. The Kirkland Police Department is one of 59 law enforcement organizations, which make up approximately 20 percent of all Washington law enforcement, that is currently WASPC accredited.

WASPC was founded in 1963 and represents executive and top management personnel from law enforcement agencies statewide. With more than 900 members it includes the 39 elected county sheriffs, and 240 police chiefs, as well as the Washington State Patrol, the Washington State Department of Corrections, and representatives of several federal agencies.

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